Yom Tzedakah

A special day to educate and inspire toward charitable giving.

In February 2010, Alejandro Ergas, a 40-something businessman, was at home in Santiago when a massive earthquake struck Chile, leaving hundreds dead and hundreds of thousands homeless. In response, community leaders got together to plan relief efforts. As their discussions dragged on for three days with no practical response, Ergas couldn’t take it any longer. He loaded up a small truck with rice, water and mattresses, and along with his 16-year-old son drove eight hours south to the epicenter. They distributed the truckload of goods to the victims and drove back. “Maybe it wasn’t the most efficient way to help,” Ergas says, “but it made an impression on me that I’ll never forget.”

The experience spurned Ergas to evaluate his own attitude toward tzedakah – charitable giving. “For years, my idea of tzedakah was to write a check and send it in the mail,” Ergas told Aish.com. “But as I got more involved, I realized that tzedakah does as much for the giver as it does for the recipient. I found that the more I give, the more friends I have, the better I feel, and the more my business succeeds.”

Ergas was frustrated, however, at the overall lack of awareness in the Jewish community. “A rabbi will typically speak about tzedakah on Yom Kippur, when making an appeal for the synagogue or Israel Bonds. But there is so much more beauty and wisdom in our tradition that is not being communicated.”

So why, Ergas wondered, couldn’t there be a special day devoted to learning and committing to the ideals of tzedakah?

Thus the concept of “Yom Tzedakah” – Jewish Charity Day – was born.

After consultation with rabbis, he settled on Rosh Chodesh Elul (August 6-7, 2013), the Jewish calendar day that falls out exactly one month before Rosh Hashana.

Elul, the last month of the year, is a period of preparation for the High Holidays. One of the central Rosh Hashana prayers states: "Teshuva, Prayer and Charity remove a bad decree." In this way, Yom Tzedakah is a great way to launch into the holiday season and ensure a good judgment on Rosh Hashana. As the Talmud says: In that in the way we treat others, the Almighty will treat us as well.”

There are several ways to celebrate Yom Tzedakah:

(1) Give monetary aid directly to the needy.
(2) Designate a tzedakah box at home and commit to putting in a coin regularly.
(3) Volunteer to help others.
(4) Be especially alert to the needs of family and friends.
(5) Send a contribution to a communal organization.
(6) Investigate universal problems and possible solutions.

Says Ergas: “Although we have an obligation to help others every day of the year, the idea is that on this day, everyone – men, women and children – should reflect on being more generous, and on giving tzedakah according to their ability.

Tzedakah Principles

A basic tenet of Judaism is the striving to transcend and sanctify the material world. The Talmud (Baba Batra 9a) states that the mitzvah of tzedakah is equal to all other commands, because through giving tzedakah we refine and elevate all the energies that were involved in earning that money – the hours of work, emotional toil, etc. In this way, tzedakah is a huge force for spiritualizing the material.

Further, based on the verse in Deuteronomy 14:22, the Sages derive a formula for success in life: "Aser bishvil shetis’asher" – "tithe so that you will be rich." (A 10% tithe is the standard obligation.) This promise of riches applies in both a spiritual and physical sense. Spiritually, one who gives tzedakah becomes rich by refining himself and becoming a better person – elevating himself spiritually, and overcoming the apathetic and individualistic attitude so prevalent today. Physically, he receives a promise to become rich and increase his possessions.

It is for this reason that the Sages say: “More than the rich person does for the poor, the poor person does for the rich.”

“People think that when they give, they have less,” says Ergas. “But nobody ever became poor from giving. In the spiritual world there is a natural law that states: You have to give, to get."

Maimonides, in his “Laws of Gifts to the Poor" (10:7), denotes eight levels for giving tzedakah. The highest level is to provide money to someone who has lost his job, and help him get a new job. This has huge ramifications for today’s high-unemployment economy. In Chile, for example, Ergas has created the Ariel Foundation (www.arieljobcenter.cl), an extraordinary program which provides free job training and job referrals.

“By providing monetary assistance, no matter the amount, we show that the money really does not belong to us but to God,” says Ergas. “He gave it to us to be ‘administrators,’ to manage the money and use it in the best possible way. We are God's ‘bankers’."

Another Jewish principle is that tzedakah begins at home. If your parents are hungry, that comes before giving to a homeless shelter. From there it is concentric circles outward: your community, then your country. (Jerusalem and Israel are considered as one's own community, since every Jew has a share in the homeland.)

Though this project is just getting off the ground, Ergas has grand plans. “My dream is that one day, Jewish communities around the world will celebrate Yom Tzedakah every Rosh Chodesh Elul. Synagogues will conduct educational symposiums. Foundations will launch grand tzedakah projects. And each individual will reflect on being more generous, more sensitive to the needs of others.”

Featured at Aish.com:

About the Author

Rabbi Shraga Simmons is the co-founder of Aish.com, and co-author of "48 Ways to Wisdom" (ArtScroll). He is co-founder of HonestReporting.com, and author of "David & Goliath", the definitive account of anti-Israel media bias. Originally from Buffalo, New York, he holds a degree in journalism from the University of Texas at Austin, and rabbinic ordination from the Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem. He lives with his wife and children in the Modi'in region of Israel.

The opinions expressed in the comment section are the personal views of the commenters. Comments are moderated, so please keep it civil.

Visitor Comments: 6

(6)
Anonymous,
August 4, 2013 3:34 PM

Jazak Ubaruch!

Great Idea.May G-d bless you Alejandro and all who participate in this great project.

(5)
Alejandro Ergas,
May 2, 2012 1:07 AM

Thxs for the intetest and help spread the word !

Thanks everyone for the interest in Yom Tzedakah. This year 2012 Rosh Chodesh Elul falls on August 19
Please spread the word to help rebuild the Tzedakah spirit among jewish communities all over.
As noted in the article, the accent is put on the donor more than the recipient, and the benefit it brings to give.
Thxs to all
Alejandro Ergas

(4)
shimon,
August 28, 2011 10:20 AM

Amazing

This is a clear example of someone thinking about how help the Jewish people develop in a way that effectively speaks to where people are today. Good for you!

(3)
Steve Goldstein,
August 25, 2011 12:23 PM

This is brilliant

I love this idea. Such a bold initiative. It's exactly what the Jewish people needs right now. Kudos to Aish.com for getting this publicized. Let's take this to the world!

(2)
Ellen Jensen,
August 24, 2011 9:08 PM

http://www.onepercentclub.com/

One more way to help many more people together! Any member may list new initiatives, so local needs may be addressed in this way.
Behatzlacha raba and kol tuv!

(1)
Anonymous,
August 23, 2011 3:19 PM

Sharing this with our Rabbi

What a wonderful and inspiring idea! I am forwarding this to our community Rabbi and our children's school suggesting that we adopt this idea for Rosh Chodesh Ellul.

I have had a very difficult life, beset by illness, unemployment, and disappointment from those who had pledged to care for me. I am having trouble seeing the benevolent God in all this. What do you say, rabbi?

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

I am very sorry to hear about the difficult times that you have had to endure. The trials that you have gone through no doubt have obviously made your relationship to God a difficult one. I can understand why.

As a rabbi, I have witnessed the most horrendous situations imaginable. I have experienced a 20-year-old who lost both of her parents in a car crash. Can you imagine a girl so close to her parents and in one day they're gone? I've lived through a husband coming home to find that his wife has collapsed, and in two days she's dead. There was nothing wrong with her before. And on and on and on.

When someone is in the midst of suffering, that's not the time to offer answers. It's a time to listen and empathize and be with the person as best you can. If there's anyone going through a painful time and is looking for a sense of relief, I am skeptical whether these intellectual answers will offer any kind of relief.

Dealing with pain and suffering is never easy, particularly since we often feel so helpless and out of control. But one thing we do have control over and that is our attitude. Try to stick to this 3-part formula:

1) Look for the positive side to things.

2) Try not to judge God, Who knows more than we do.

3) Ask God for the clarity to understand how this is for the best.

Our perceptions of good and evil are directly related to our understanding of the world. An African tribesman who never saw a hypodermic syringe in his life could think upon seeing a doctor inoculate a child that the doctor was actually trying to hurt the child! Our perceptions change with information.

Therefore the Jewish approach to "suffering" is that everything happens for the good, but since we are finite and cannot see the whole picture, we perceive some things as bad.

God has more information than we do; thus we cannot judge Him and say He is doing something bad. We trust God and say, "I haven't yet figured out why, but God knows this is for the best."

The Talmud tells the story of Rebbe Akiva who was traveling on the road late one night. His only source of light, a candle, blew out; his mode of transportation, a donkey, ran away; and his only source of food, a chicken, died. The next morning Rebbe Akiva realized that armed bandits had plundered everything in the area. Had they seen his candle, or heard his chicken or donkey, they would have victimized him as well.

We can accept pain and suffering in the world by trying to see what positive side it may have. For example, a woman whose child was killed by a drunk driver went out and started MADD - Mothers Against Drunk Driving. This organization was responsible for revolutionizing the laws against drunk driving in America, and as a result has surely saved thousands of lives. It could be said that the purpose of this child was to elevate his mother to the towering heights of greatness that she indeed achieved as a result of the tragedy.

Of course it is not always easy to find the positive side. But even the attempt helps tremendously. It is interesting that if we look back on our own lives, the times we have grown the most are not when things have gone easy, but when they've been difficult. So many times what appears as "bad" or "negative" ends up being a blessing. A person could lose their job, for example, only to realize later that was the opportunity they needed to break into a growing, new field!

In the meanwhile, we have invested so much time and energy into worrying or regretting - all for nothing and all to our detriment. It is wise to remember that worry is defined as "interest paid in advance on a debt which often times never comes due." So when we are having problems, we can ask ourselves, "What have I learned or gained?"

Also, there are two excellent books I can recommend: "Why me, God?" by Lisa Aiken (published by Aaronson), and "Confronting the Loss of a Baby," by Yamin Levy (Ktav).

In 1973, a cease-fire resolution was passed by the U.N. Security Council to halt the Yom Kippur War. Shuttle diplomacy by Henry Kissinger compelled Israel and Egypt to accept the cease-fire. Fighting, however, would continue for another four days. In the war, Israel suffered the loss of 2,600 soldiers and 800 tanks. Four years later, Egyptian leader Anwar Sadat would visit Jerusalem and announce his readiness to forge a permanent peace deal.

I told a group of people to repeat, "I am grateful to my Creator" five minutes each day for a month. Some of the results were:

* "At first I found it difficult to keep this up. This gave me a jolt. The Creator is giving me life each moment of each day and He gives me the air I breathe. Why is it so hard for me to express my gratitude? This self-rebuke gave me a strong feeling of motivation. I was committed to use the power of repeating messages to myself to build up this gratitude.

* "I realized that I would only be able to repeat this for five minutes at a time if I would sing it with a tune. So I would sing this five minutes each day. It became my favorite song.

* "The first day when I heard this, I found myself having to wait for something to start. I began to feel frustrated. Then I said to myself, ‘This is a perfect time to repeat, "I am grateful to my Creator" for five minutes.' It totally transformed the waiting into an uplifting experience. Throughout the month, I chose potentially frustrating moments to practice this. After a while, the stirrings of feelings of frustration became a trigger to begin my exercise."

* "Someone saw me smiling while I was waiting in line at my local supermarket. He asked me if anything special is going on in my life. "There are a lot of special things that I'm beginning to become more aware of," I replied.

* "By repeating, ‘I am grateful to my Creator,' I began to realize that everyone who is kind to me in any way was sent to me by my Creator. I increased my gratitude towards those people and I increased my gratitude to the Creator of it all."

May He Who knows what is hidden accept our call for help and listen to our cry (Siddur).

The Talmud states that a person may be coerced to perform a mitzvah even if it is required that the mitzvah be done of one's own volition (Rosh Hashanah 6a).

But are not coercion and volition mutually exclusive? Not necessarily, explains Rambam. Inasmuch as the soul of the Jew intrinsically wishes to do the Divine will, and it is only the physical self - which is subject to temptation - that may be resistive, the coercion inflicted upon the person overcomes that external resistance. Thus, when one performs the mitzvah, it is with the full volition of the inner self, the true self, for at his core, every Jew wishes to comply with the mandates of the Torah.

There is a hidden part of us, to which we may have limited access, yet we know it is there. When we pray for our needs, said Rabbi Uri of Strelisk, we generally ask only for that which we feel ourselves to be lacking. However, we must also recognize that our soul has spiritual needs, and that we may not be aware of its cravings.

We therefore pray, said Rabbi Uri, that God should listen not only to the requests that we verbalize, but also to our hidden needs that are very important to us - but which He knows much better than we.

Today I shall...

try to realize that there is a part of me of which I am only vaguely aware. I must try to get to know that part of myself, because it is my very essence.

With stories and insights,
Rabbi Twerski's new book Twerski on Machzor makes Rosh Hashanah prayers more meaningful. Click here to order...